Vehicle redirection configuration

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a structure for use along vehicular roadways for the purpose of redirecting vehicles which have strayed off the side edges of the roadway. A configuration is provided which will redirect vehicles along a path to avoid collision with the ends of parapet walls, piers, or other hazards located along such roadways.

United States Patent Morrett, Jr. June 28, 1974 VEHICLE REDIRECTION 1,551,556 9/1925 Gust 404/6 CONFIGURATION 2,078,864 4/ i937 Macatee 404/7 3,599,542 8/1971 Morett 404/7 [76] Inventor: James A. Morrett, Jr., RD. 4 Box 986, Hamsburg, 17112 Primary Examiner--Nile C. Byers, Jr. [22] Filed; Feb. 6, 197 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Jay L. Seitchik [2]] Appl. No.: 329,989 57 ABSTRACT This invention relates to a structure for use along ve- [52] US. Cl. 404/6, 256/ 13.1 hicular roadways for the purpose of redirecting vehi- [51 Int. Cl E0lf 15/00 cles which have strayed off the side edges of the road- [58] Field of Search 404/6, 7, 9, l3; 256/l3.l way. A configuration is provided which will redirect vehicles along a path to avoid collision with the ends [56] References Cited of parapet walls, piers, or other hazards located along UNITED STATES PATENTS roadvvflys-v Healy 404/6 X 5 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures emmmauxze new. 131820.910

sum mm 3 PAIENTEBJum m4 SHEET 3 (IF 3 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A common safety hazard in existing roadways lies in the fact that bridges, traffic signs, and numerous other structures exist in close proximity to the roadway in a position where vehicles which stray off the roadway can collide into such structures with the resultant damage to property and life. There are numerous fatalities on the highways each year due to accidents of this nature.

In my earlier US. Pat. No. 3,599,542, granted Aug. 17, 1971, entitled WARPED PLANE BERM there was disclosed one solution to the above problem. Certain drawbacks have come to light when structures of the type described in such patent are used. One such drawback relates to the accumulation of drainage water onto the traffic lanes or roadway in a manner which may be unacceptable under certain driving conditions. Another drawback relates to the fact that the structure of my earlier patent is formed directly into the shoulder or berm located adjacent the roadway surface thereby causing a discontinuity or interruption in such shoulder which also .may be unacceptable in certain localities and under certain conditions.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly it is an object of this invention to provide an improved vehicle redirection configiration which avoids the drawbacks enumerated above.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle redirection configuration which can be usable with existing roadways and shoulders without interferring with the same.

A further object is to provide an improved vehicle redirection configuration which will prevent the possibility of a vehicle straying off of a roadway onto a course which would lead to a collision with an obstruction located along the roadway edge.

In accordance with the above objects, a vehicle redirection configuration is provided which is located adjacent a roadway and which begins in a generally horizontal condition and ends in a generally vertical. position, said configuration being twisted or warped along its length to achieve its final design.

Other objects and attainments of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which there is shown and described a preferred embodiment of the invention. It is to be understood, however, that this embodiment is not intended to be exhaustive nor limiting of the invention but is given for purposes of illustration only in order that others skilled in the art may fully understand the invention and the principals thereof and the manner of applying it in practical use, so that they may modify it in various forms, each as may be best suited to the conditions of a particular use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES In the drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a roadway having a vehicle redirection configuration made in accordance with the teachings of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the structure shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a partial top plan view of the configuration of FIG. 1; FIG. 4 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 and showing an alternative form of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a safety curb for use with my invention; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to FIG. 5 and showing an alternative curb configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring first to FIG. 1 of the drawings there is shown a typical roadway 10 having a plurality of driving lanes, the number of lanes being variable and having nothing to do with the present invention. Adjacent the roadway 10 there is shown a shoulder or berm 12, such shoulder being located at each of opposite sides of the roadway. Located along the roadway there is shown an obstruction 14 which in this case is depicted by a pair of parapet walls, it being understood that the walls are shown for illustration only and could be any of the other various obstructions normally found along the edges of roadways.

The vehicle redirection configuration forming my invention is indicated at 16 in FIG. 1 and extends along both sides of the roadway leading to the obstruction or walls 14. The configuration begins at a location indicated as and is substantially horizontal and lying in the same plane as the roadway 10 and shoulder 12. The configurationproceed to a location indicated as 16b which is adjacent obstruction 14 and at which point the configuration is in a generally vertical condition and lies in the plane of the obstruction. The overall configuration is best describable as being of a warped plane which gradually changes from a horizontal to a vertical position. The configuration 16 may be made of any suitable material and in the illustration shown the configuration is made out of masonry.

It should be noted that in FIG. 1 the configuration 16 is located along both sides of the roadway leading up to the obstruction 14 and is disposed outwardly of the shoulder 12. There are instances of course where no shoulders are present on roadways and in those instances the configuration would be located immediately adjacent the roadway so as to perform the same function and in'the same manner as shown in the illustration. It should also be noted that the roadway of FIG. 1 is assumed to be a uni-directional roadway and therefore the configurations 16 are not disposed along the far sides of obstruction 14. Obviously if roadway 10 was a multi-directional highway then the configuration 16 would be located on both sides of obstruction 14 so as to be capable of redirecting vehicles traveling in either direction along the roadway.

The effective length of the configuration 16 will be determined by the conditions of use of the particular road or highway on which the obstruction is located. It will necessarily be of a length commensurate with the anticipated speeds of approaching vehicles. The transition must be gradual enough to preclude the possibility of overturning a vehicle as the vehicle comes in contact with the configuration.

In FIG. 2 it can be seen that the configuration 16 begins from a low point 18 which is disposed completely along configuration 16 and which traces a line which is parallel to roadway 10. In those instances where a shoulder is located adjacent the roadway then the line traced by the low points 18 is also parallel to such shoulder. It is also apparent from FIG. 2 that the high points 20 of configuration 16 form a line which begins at a point spaced horizontally from point 18 by the width of configuration l6 and then gradually moves into a plane which is disposed directly above the point 18 of the configuration which is located adjacent the obstruction 14. This is an extremely important consideration of the present invention since it provides a construction which is consistent with the above objects in that a vehicle redirection configuration is provided which is independent of any shoulder located along a roadway and in addition would not interfere with the normal drainage of water from the roadway.

Referring now to FIG. 3 it is believed that the above description will become even more apparent. The line formed by the low points 18 of the vehicle redirection configuration can be seen to be parallel to the roadway 10 and the shoulder 12 whereas the line formed by the high points of the configuration begins at a point disposed laterally outward from the roadway and ends at a point adjacent obstruction 14 which is in the same vertical plane as the low point of the configuration.

In FIG. 4 there is shown a modification of my invention. Those portions which are the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 have been assigned the same reference numerals and will not be described here. The additional structure concerns the provision of a cant strip 22 which is disposed along the lower edge of obstruction l4 and configuration 16, such strips being commonly used with obstructions in order to be engageable by the tires of a vehicle so as to maintain the body of the vehicle out of contact with the obstruction. It can be seen in FIG. 4 that the strip 22 may be conveniently blended into the redirection configuration 16 in a manner which is believed to be obvious from the drawing.

In FIGS. 5 and 6 there is shown alternative shapes of cant strip or safety curbs, these alternative forms being designated 22a and 22b respectively. It is to be understood however that such curbs may be of any convenient form and are not restricted to the particualr ones shown in the drawings.

In those situations where a cant strip 22 is used, this strip would of course replace the conventional curb which is found along the base of roadway obstructions now in existance.

In use, a vehicle which strays off of the roadway would have its wheels engage the configuration 16 and the vehicle would be redirected onto the roadway in a manner which would avoid collision with the roadway obstruction.

It is to be understood that my invention can be adapted to other situations with equal ease, such as pier structures under a bridge, guardrails, posts, light standards, retaining walls, or any other object which could cause a collision or wreckage.

A further advantage of my invention is that it can be constructed adjacent to existing obstructions thereby increasing the safety factor while maintaining construction costs at a minimum.

What is claimed is:

1. A vehicle redirection configuration at the side of roadway traffic lane to protect vehicles approaching an obstruction located a fixed distance at the side of the traffic lane, said redirection configuration comprising an elongated structure having a mass and being disposed laterally adjacent to said traffic lane and having a first beginning end portion generally coplanar with said traffic lane at the approach side of said obstruction, a second portion of said structure terminating adjacent to said obstruction and being generally vertically oriented with respect to said traffic lane so as to lie generally in a plane which is similarly disposed as is the plane of the obstruction extending along the traffic lane, said second portion being spaced from said traffic lane by a distance no greater than said fixed distance, said structure having an intermediate portion connecting said firstand second portions, said intermediate portion being gradually warped between said beginning end portion and said vertical portion thereby forming a warped plane surface having a first edge lying generally in the plane of said traffic lane throughout the extent of said redirection structure, said first edge further lying along a line which is generally parallel to the edge of said roadway, said warped plane having a second edge located opposite said first edge and being decreasingly spaced from the edge of the traffic lane from the beginning end portion of said structure to said vertical portion, the structure mass approaching said traffic lane as it approaches said obstruction, said structure being disposed at least said fixed distance from the traffic lane.

2. The structure as set forth in claim 1 wherein said warped plane second edge is generally coplanar with said traffic lane at the beginning end portion of said structure and lies generally in a'vertical plane above said first edge at said vertical portion of said structure.

lane and parallel thereto. 

1. A vehicle redirection configuration at the side of roadway traffic lane to protect vehicles approaching an obstruction located a fixed distance at the side of the traffic lane, said redirection configuration comprising an elongated structure having a mass and being disposed laterally adjacent to said traffic lane and having a first beginning end portion generally coplanar with said traffic lane at the approach side of said obstruction, a second portion of said structure terminating adjacent to said obstruction and being generally vertically oriented with respect to said traffic lane so as to lie generally in a plane which is similarly disposed as is the plane of the obstruction extending along the traffic lane, said second portion being spaced from said traffic lane by a distance no greater than said fixed distance, said structure having an intermediate portion connecting said first and second portions, said intermediate portion being gradually warped between said beginning end portion and said vertical portion thereby forming a warped plane surface having a first edge lying generally in the plane of said traffic lane throughout the extent of said redirection structure, said first edge further lying along a line which is generally parallel to the edge of said roadway, said warped plane having a second edge located opposite said first edge and being decreasingly spaced from the edge of the traffic lane from the beginning end portion of said structure to said vertical portion, the structure mass approaching said traffic lane as it approaches said Obstruction, said structure being disposed at least said fixed distance from the traffic lane.
 2. The structure as set forth in claim 1 wherein said warped plane second edge is generally coplanar with said traffic lane at the beginning end portion of said structure and lies generally in a vertical plane above said first edge at said vertical portion of said structure.
 3. A structure as set forth in claim 2 further comprising a cant strip means disposed along a portion of said first edge of said structure.
 4. A structure as set forth in claim 2 wherein said first edge is disposed generally along the edge of said traffic lane.
 5. The structure as set forth in claim 2 wherein said warped plane first edge is separated from said traffic lane by a shoulder running along the edge of said traffic lane and parallel thereto. 